"Upon request by the LIBE Committee,
this paper provides some information on the current situation
of asylum and migration in Italy, focusing in particular on the
hotspots and on the asylum procedures. The paper
describes the applicable legislative framework, as recently amended,
as well as its practical application."

"Greek Migration Minister Yiannis
Mouzalas said that 20 to 25 thousands refugees will remain in
Greece if the EU Turkey deal stands. At the same time, he expressed
concern about the increasing influx of refugees and migrants
on the Greek islands.

Speaking to Skai TV on Tuesday, Mouzalas
said if the EU Turkey deal fails, things will be difficult.
He noted that after the clearing up of Idomenti camp in North
Greece last year, 25,000 refugees have been transferred in one
way or another outside of Greece. We have 10,000 people
with right to relocation and 6,000-7,000 with the right to family
reunion, the minister said.

He admitted that there is a problem
on the islands because of the influx of migrants and refugees
and that the plan for small pre-accession centers should go ahead
on all islands."

"The European Commission warned
yesterday (6 June) it could sanction member states that dont
follow EU quota rules for asylum seekers by opening infringement
proceedings against them as early as next week.

The warning came after the Czech Republic
said it would not take in more migrants, citing security concerns."

"The European Commission threatened
to take governments to court on Tuesday (6 June) following an
announcement by the Czech Republic to halt asylum seeker relocation
from Greece and Italy.

Czech interior minister Milan Chovanec
had earlier this week said that the country would withdraw from
the legally binding EU scheme, over broader concerns linked to
security and the "dysfunctionality of the whole system"."

"The European Ombudsman will examine
practices by the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) at hotspots
(reception centers) in Greece. The move comes in response to
a complaint about the inadmissibility decisions taken under the
EU-Turkey agreement. The complaint was filed by the European
Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) with the support
of Brot für die Welt in April 2017."

"Greece remains under pressure
with a government-reported number of 62,200 refugees and migrants
still present in its territory, of whom around 14,000 on the
Eastern Aegean islands and around 48,200 persons on mainland
Greece."

"On Friday, ministers will take
stock of the current situation on migration, in particular
in the Central Mediterranean, and will discuss return policy.
They will also touch upon the issue of improving the interoperability
of information systems....

In the margins of the Council, the Mixed Committee (EU plus Iceland,
Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland) will take stock of work on
the proposals on the SIS and on ETIAS. Exceptionally, the
Schengen associated states will be present in the discussions
on migration, return policy and information systems and interoperability.

"More than a year since the adoption
of the EU-Turkey Statement, the implemented measures have delivered
some tangible results with regard to the challenges underlying
the refugee and migration crisis. While the situation in Greece
has largely improved in terms of reception, registration and
asylum processing, some outstanding concerns still persist and
require further efforts and improvements, PACE Committee on Migration
said today....

Adopting unanimously a draft resolution,
based on the report prepared by Miltiadis Varvitsiotis (Greece,
EPP/CD), the Committee stated that the reception conditions and
asylum procedures in Italy, even if also improving, require urgent
action. As with Greece, Italy has become a destination country
and continuous mass arrivals risk saturating the countrys
reception capacities. The question of return of rejected asylum
seekers should be given immediate consideration; the large number
of irregular migrants creates threats for the whole asylum system
and social stability."

"The Czech Republic will stop taking
in asylum seekers under the EU quota scheme to distribute refugees
who arrived in Greece and Italy, citing security concerns, the
government said Monday (5 June). Prague protested the 2015 decision
to share migrants, and has taken in only a dozen out of the 2,691
set by the quota. The Czech Republic holds elections in October
and migration is a sensitive topic."

"In Greece the situation in the
governmental camps seems to worsen these days, even though this
is hard to imagine. The announcement of some NGOs to leave the
hotspot of Chios, this could be the case for some mainland sites
too, as the budget is being cut. Another reason is, that they
do not consider the situation as crisis anymore....

Obviously the Greek government is struggling
with keeping even the bad conditions in some camps, as the bureaucratic
part seems to be chaotic, the budget is being cut and there is
no appropiate strategy to fit the needs of the people. The residents
are the ones suffering because of this situation and living with
this situation."

Bulgaria

"10 people died in a car accident
on Trakia Motorway. Bulgarian National Television reports (via
Sofia Globe), that a 16 year old drove the van, in which 17 or
18 people were. The police assumes, that the driver maybe felt
asleep and crashed into the tree. It is said, that this is the
worst incident with refugees involved in Bulgaria."

20 people landed on Lesvos

"The Portuguese Maritime Police,
on a mission in Greece, has detected 20 people, 10 of whom are
children, said the National Maritime Authority (AMN). In a statement,
the AMN said that the 20 peope were detected as they had landed
on the Greek coast near Molyvos (Lesvos) after crossing the Aegean
Sea. The Greek authorities have already been contacted to pick
up the people, who are from Afghanistan and Iraq."

"Expulsions of people from their
homes just because of their nationality, religion or race must
never repeat, Czech Deputy Prime Minister and Christian Democrat
chairman (KDU-CSL) Pavel Belobradek said at the Sudeten German
Landsmannschaft's congress today."

"Germany's government is falling
short of its goal to deport significantly more rejected asylum
applicants, a newspaper reports. More than 8,000 migrants have
been removed so far this year, compared with 25,000 in 2016."

&COPY; Statewatch ISSN 1756-851X.
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